Government Celebrates Education Savings Week

The Government of Saskatchewan has proclaimed November 15-21, Education Savings Week in the province. Education Savings Week is a nationally recognized week, aimed at increasing the financial literacy of citizens and encouraging them to save for their children’s education.

“Our government wants to ensure that as many students as possible have the financial resources they need to participate in and complete their post-secondary education,” Advanced Education Minister Scott Moe said. “In 2014, the government launched the Saskatchewan Advantage Grant for Education Savings (SAGES) to help them accomplish this.”

Through SAGES, the Government of Saskatchewan provides a grant of 10 per cent on contributions made since January 1, 2013, into a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) to a maximum of $250 per child per year.

To be eligible for SAGES, the following requirements must be met:

the child is a resident of Saskatchewan when the RESP contribution is made;

the child is named as a beneficiary of an eligible RESP;

contributions are made on or before December 31 of the year the child turns 17; and

contributions are made at a participating financial institution.

As of June 2015, more than 30,000 Saskatchewan children have received more than $8.5 million from the SAGES program.

“To make SAGES accessible to more people, we made a change to the program,” Moe said. “As of this fall, RESP subscribers at financial institutions not offering SAGES can move their past RESP contributions to an institution that offers SAGES. They will then receive the grant retroactively to January 1, 2013.”

This added flexibility will make it easier for more Saskatchewan families to benefit from the program. A total of 21 financial institutions are now offering SAGES with another five committed.